Government

10:23 am

Thu March 21, 2013

Snyder bucking the Republican trend with gas tax proposal

LANSING, MI (AP)-- After he took office two years ago, Michigan's Republican Governor Rick Snyder acted quickly to cut business taxes in an effort to boost the state's economy.

But lately he has roiled conservatives by calling for an increase in gasoline taxes and vehicle fees to fix crumbling roads.

Snyder's move shows a willingness among several Republican governors to step away from the party's anti-tax ideology to deal with strained transportation budgets.

Snyder and the governors of Virginia and Pennsylvania are among those who believe that gasoline taxes can be justified because they pay for improvements in infrastructure that benefit a state's economy.

But the measures are controversial. Republican lawmakers are fighting the tax proposals and insisting on using other funds to pay for road improvements.